 January 2026 is nearly over and, just like last year, I've already got to 99 species within 5 miles of home! Once again, this begs the question might I get to 100 again in January? I did last year but things have stalled this week so it may be touch and go! January 1st kicked off well with two, presumed, returning birds staying into the New Year at Verulamium Park. Firstly, the second-winter Mediterranean Gull gave itself up relatively easily in the morning while the Yellow-browed Warbler made me work a bit harder. However, a second visit in the afternoon gave me exceptional views. The Yellow-browed Warbler at Verulamium Park, St Albans on 1st Jan Also kindly hanging around in the New Year was the male Garganey at Coursers GPs, now resplendent in summer plumage. I needn't have worried with this one though as the bird has been seen since on the main pit at Tyttenhanger, cavorting with the male Teals. The male Garganey squaring up to male Teal at Tyttenhanger GPs on 24th Jan Other New Year's Day highlights included the over-wintering Jack Snipe at Stanborough GPs along with the Barn Owl pair cosied up in their box. Tyttenhanger GPs also produced a single Brambling with the large Chaffinch flock and the regular female Stonechat. I finished the day on 72 species and then headed down to Cornwall for a week. Notable by their absence were the White-fronted Geese, the Cattle Egret and the Great Black-backed Gull present locally over the Christmas period. Would I be able to find them in 2026? I returned from Cornwall to news on 10th Jan of 9 Common Cranes over the Bedmond area. Just within my 5 mile area these would have been a good addition for the year had they not headed off SW immediately. Just 10 days into the New Year and I'd already missed something! Over the next few days however, I managed to add 2 or 3 new birds for the year each day. The 10th saw a nice adult Yellow-legged Gull (#74) at Stanborough GPs and later the regular Little Owl (#75) in its hole at Willows Farm. I found the Firecrests (#81) in Garden Wood the next day and Crossbills (#85) in Symondshyde Woods the day after that. Adult Yellow-legged Gull, Firecrest & Crossbill The New Year always has its surprises and this one came on 14th Jan with a female Goosander on Tyttenhanger main pit. A bird I don't always connect with locally so great to get it on the list!  A distant 'record shot' of the female Goosander Jan 16th brought more good news with the re-finding of the French-ringed Great Black-backed Gull in the sheep field at Stanborough GPs. A bird I thought I might have to wait until December to see again! Indeed gulls seemed to be a theme with a nice first-winter Yellow-legged Gull present at the same sight that day and then a very smart adult Caspian Gull (#95) the following day at Tyttenhanger GPs. Not an easy bird to come by and it got me wondering if this could be the 3rd year bird that lingered last year, now in its 4th year. My only hesitation is whether any sub-adult traits would still be present as this bird was a stunning full adult.  The Great Black-backed Gull, 1st winter Yellow-legged Gull & adult Caspian Gull In amongst these larid ticks a few others were welcome additions, such as the Blackcaps in my garden - hard to come by sometimes in January - and the Woodcock in its habitual place at Highfield Farm. A visit to the Watercress LNR in St Albans got me a smart male Bullfinch while Coopers Green GPs delivered me at least 16 Mandarins (#97). A walk around Redbournbury with John on 22nd Jan brought a surprise encounter with a female Marsh Harrier. I say surprise partly because I had listed it as a wish for the walk but also as it is the first I've seen locally for a little while. Having had many sightings earlier last year they seemed to peter out as the year went on. Almost as soon as I had ticked the harrier off news came in of a single Golden Plover at Stanborough GPs. A scarce bird so far this winter I had to make the dash across St Albans where it was waiting patiently in amongst 220 Lapwings. Number 99 was in the bag but will I get one more this month...? Marsh Harrier & Golden Plover on 22nd Jan
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 December 2025With a record 155 species on my 5 Miles From Home List for 2025 could the final month take the total any higher? Of course it could! Cold easterlies ensured that birds were on the move and December proved remarkably lively. An indication of this was the annual Herts Bird Club Christmas Count recorded a record-breaking 118 species during the period between Christmas Day and New Year's Eve. The eclipse male Garganey I found at Coursers GPs on 23rd November stayed until year end, by which time it has almost completely moulted into summer plumage. The photos below show the bird as it first appeared in November to how it appeared late December but in flight it was always immediately obvious with its pale blue-grey wings. A Cattle Egret also appeared at Willows Farm on 7th and then remained until Boxing Day. Possibly the same bird that was seen on 25th Oct, although where had it been in the meantime? The bird was easily viewable as it fed amongst the cattle in the old pumpkin field and was joined by several Little Egrets. On 14th Dec, with a Great White Egret on site, I was able to see all 3 egret species at one site on the same day - I think a first for me in Herts. The Cattle Egret at Willows Farm While chasing egrets at Tyttenhanger on 14th December I noticed a white blob on the fishing lake and putting bins to eyes revealed a beautiful male Goldeneye! My first locally for several years and perhaps the first male bird I had seen at Tyttenhanger. More importantly, a new bird for the year coming in at #156.  Male Goldeneye on 14th Dec at Tyttenhanger GPs With family birthdays and Christmas festivities taking over mid-month the news of flocks of White-fronted Geese flying over the county on Christmas Eve got me itching to get out searching. The obvious starting place would be Willows Farm where a regular and sizeable flock of Canada & Greylag Geese had accumulated. Come Boxing Day I headed to Willows Farm and sure enough 13 White-fronted Geese had joined the goose-flock! My first White-fronted Geese locally since the single bird at Stanborough GPs in 2021 and #157 for my local list. It was great to have these wild geese from the Russian (albifrons) population feeding with the more familiar Greylags and Canadas and somewhat dwarfed by them. They were last seen on 29th but who knows, we may get more if the easterly chill continues. The closing weeks of 2025 felt a little bit like a 'Groundhog Year' with many birds in place by the 31st that were also in place in 2024. A Jack Snipe reappeared at Stanborough GPs while a Black Redstart spent a day there on 19th. Like clockwork, a Great Black-backed Gull appeared at Coursers GPs on 28th - the same day as in 2024. While tempting to think that it might be a returning bird this one was ringed and further research revealed it had been ringed in Le Havre, France in May 2024 so clearly not the same bird as the un-ringed bird last Dec! Great Black-backed Gull at Coursers GPs on 28th Dec - a county scarcity nowadays The real Groundhog moment came with the discovery of a Yellow-browed Warbler on 31st Dec at Verulamium Park in St Albans. Along with the returning (now 2nd winter) Mediterranean Gull the end of the year finished as it had begun with a group of birders and photographers all assembled near the Fighting Cocks Pub for views of this, presumably returning, Siberian gem. Two presumed returning birds to Verulamium Park - the Mediterranean Gull & Yellow-browed Warbler A great variety of birds wrapped up 2025 but would any of them stay to 2026? The year had proved to be exceptional, not just for my local list with 157 a new record but county-wide too. Long may it continue! 🎉 HAPPY NEW YEAR! 🎉 Since leaving Cornwall a week has already gone by and each day has delivered one or two additions to the 2025 5 Miles From Home List. In fact I am 6 species up on the same date last year so the local area has certainly been delivering! Since my Cornish trip I have added a further 17 species to the list - some of them expected such as Greenfinch, Sparrowhawk, Green Woodpecker, Raven and Red-legged Partridge but others not so expected. The Little Owl headlining this post is always a pleasing find - especially as this one at Tyttenhanger Gravel Pits has been harder to find in recent years. After what appeared to be a good year with 2 pairs at nest holes they then disappeared and have not been regularly seen in the last couple of years. Knowing they are still there is reassuring as I know of at least two other sites where the main nest tree has been felled - either by the land manager or by strong winds. Two star birds reappeared while I was away - the Yellow-browed Warbler at Verulamium Park in St Albans and the Black Redstart over-wintering in the roof of St Albans Abbey. The Yellow-browed Warbler & the Black Redstart in St Albans The Yellow-browed Warbler had been giving astonishing views low down at the lake's edge but I had to make-do with treetop views. Local birder Murray Brown had re-found it on 7th January after it went missing during Christmas. The Black Redstart - presumably last year's returning bird - was a somewhat peculiar sighting in that the bird has taken up residence in the cathedral roof. It's believed to be feeding on a healthy supply of Ladybirds but can only be seen when it appears at a small diamond-shaped window at the west end. I trust it knows how to get out but is no doubt benefiting from the shelter and free food! The same day saw me visit Stanborough GPs where I flushed a Jack Snipe and Garden Wood at Tyttenhanger GPs where I found an over-wintering Firecrest - both great birds to get on my list so early on. I was a bit slow with the camera but did manage a distant shot of the Jack Snipe as it (unusually) chose to fly around quite high before dropping back down.  Jack Snipe at Stanborough GPs A very pleasing find on 14th came in the form of a Woodcock in a wood at Highfield Farm on the edge of St Albans. It has become my most reliable site for the birds and will hopefully remain that way for many years more. A dog walk around the Munden Estate, Bricket Wood the next day gave me a pair of Mandarin Ducks but these were out done on 19th with a flock of 15 at Coopers Green GPs! The dog walk the next day brought brief views of a Barn Owl that has been regularly hunting at Redbournbury and at least 2 of the resident Cetti's Warblers there. My list now stood at 90 species. Distant video-grabs of the Short-eared Owl at Stanborough GPs on 16th Jan I was extremely pleased to get the Barn Owl - after all I've yet to hear or see a Tawny Owl this year. However, that same evening I popped into Stanborough GPs and was rewarded with a distant Short-eared Owl. It appeared to fly up from Cromer Hyde farm but then headed off north-west flying higher and higher. This is a real bonus bird as I didn't record one locally in the whole of 2024 despite there being 4 in the area at the end of 2023. To have it 'in the bank', so to speak, this early on bodes well for the 2025 year list! The week was not done however and with gulls on my radar I spent some time checking local roosts. I trekked out to the back of Coursers Farm where a newly scraped area has been attracting gull flocks. After some scanning I was rewarded with an adult Caspian Gull that with the Little Owl took me to #93. A visit to Coopers Green GPs today also revealed a healthy gull roost with a surprise Great Black-backed Gull among them. This is a bird I usually have to wait until Christmas to see and is maybe the bird that appeared at Coursers GPs this Christmas just gone. Either way, it takes me to 94 species for my local list and begs the question as to whether 100 is possible before the end of January? Watch this space...! Adult Caspian Gull at Coursers Farm and a Great Black-backed Gull at Coopers Green GPs
 As has been my wont for the last few years the New Year saw me visiting The Lizard in Cornwall for a week. There is nothing that I like better than to walk out along the coastline and encounter the elements and the wild ruggedness of the landscape. Lowland Point (pictured) is usually one of the first places I head to where usually it is just me and the sea and the rocky shore. There's always something of interest, either in the bird and marine life or in what the sea has thrown up. I've learnt to linger, even in a storm, and take time to sift through what can be found. Mediterranean Gulls and Firecrests are common encounters at this time of year giving the feel of rarity. Wintering Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps also pop up hinting at the warmer climes - although no sense of that on the first day I arrived. Instead a storm blew from the southwest throwing foam onto the beach and driving rain. Guillemots and Razorbills sat on the sea while Kittiwakes along with a single Fulmar and Manx Shearwater sheared past. And then a small wader flew up from the beach and settled just ahead of me - the first treasure in my search: a Purple Sandpiper! This was my first ever at Lowland Point in over 40 years of visiting.  A hastily taken shot of the Purple Sandpiper before it disappeared into the storm! Further along the shore I came across three large eels washed up on the rocks. Each about a metre long I realised they must be Conger Eels - a species I had only ever heard of and never seen. Perhaps victims of the storm or more likely a fisherman's by-catch. They looked fairly fresh with just the first marks of gulls beginning to feed.  One of the 3 European Conger Eels In the afternoon I opted for the shelter of the wooded valley that leads down to Tremayne Quay on the Helford River. Along the way, more Firecrests and a brief glimpse of a Marsh Tit as it made its way along with a flock of Long-tailed Tits. The river banks held Curlew, Redshank and Greenshank - all welcome additions to my year list and by the end of the day I had run up a total of 57 species. The next day I took advantage of a break in the weather to visit the Helford River again in search of a Red-necked Grebe. I knew one had been sighted a while back and in previous years I had managed to find one just off the mouth of Frenchman's Creek where it enters the main river. I scanned with my telescope for a while finding several Great Northern Divers in the process. Just as I began to lose hope a Red-necked Grebe swum into view - a juvenile bird - and gave good but brief views as it constantly dived, only staying surfaced for less than a minute at a time.  Juvenile Red-necked Grebe on the Helford River on 6th Jan 2025 Later in the day, another bird - an adult - was found by another birder and at times both birds showed together. I, however, had moved on, picking up a very smart Black-throated Diver off Dennis Head and the usual wintering Common Sandpiper on Gillan Creek. A brief look at Coverack Sewage Works revealed at least 4 Chiffchaffs along with a very pale Siberian Chiffchaff of the tristis race. This was to be the first of several 'Sibes' with another 3 seen at Helston Sewage Works later in the week along with another obliging Common Sandpiper. One of the Siberian Chiffchaffs at Helston & a Common Sandpiper I finished the day on Goonhilly Downs with a hunting male Merlin, my Cornish tally now up to 70 species. The next day saw me back along the Coverack coast from Lowland Point with the target set as 'Grey Beach' - a sheltered cove that often attracts passerines and waders thanks to the abundance of insects out of the wind and the, presumably, warmer section of sandy cliff. Last year I found a Water Pipit feeding amongst the seaweed with the Rock Pipits...what might be in store this year I wondered? Despite there being a flock of around 20 Rock Pipits my search revealed no unusual pipit. However, I did note many Chiffchaffs flitting around on the cliff, catching flies so I turned my attention to them as previous years had revealed a Siberian Chiffchaff and a Black Redstart. However, the bird that caught my attention this year was a little Yellow-browed Warbler - my 5th find of this species this year!  The Yellow-browed Warbler feeding on the cliff Making the most of the sun I visited Kynance Cove in the evening where a pair of Choughs were enjoying the clifftop thermals and a Peregrine soared across the downs. The rain however, returned with a vengeance the next day so I headed out in the car for some roadside birding. In a sodden field full of Redwings I found 3 Cattle Egrets but the rain denied any decent photos. At this time of year, finding any livestock puts you in with a good chance of finding these birds and flocks of up to 100 have been seen in previous years. Moving on to Gunwalloe Cove and some more car window viewing I found a Red-throated Diver on the sea with a lone Guillemot. Diving constantly, the diver (and the weather) denied me any decent shots but I did manage just one record shot!  Red-throated Diver The next day, in contrast, was sunny and bright and I joined two local birders - Steve & Joe - for a visit to Loe Pool in the hope of locating the regular wintering Bittern. Joe had a secret weapon in the form of a thermal imager and very quickly located a likely heat-blob in the reedbed. Sure enough a Bittern-like area of feathers could be seen but the bird quickly moved further into cover and out of sight. We moved around to the other side of the reeded area noting several Cetti's Warblers, a Firecrest, Kingfisher and at least 3 squealing Water Rails as we did. Once again we located the likely Bittern heat-signature and before long we had managed to train my scope onto the bird. We all had reasonable views of this highly elusive and highly camouflaged bird before once again it disappeared. The short video clip below shows how well-hidden it remained! Three Goosander were also on Loe Pool and on the way home I picked up a juvenile Marsh Harrier near the Lizard village and Golden Plover and Snipe over Goonhilly Downs. My Cornish year list had reached 89 species with one day left but more rain forecast. Undeterred, the next day I headed out to Lowland Point for a good soaking but, truth be told, I find battling the elements somewhat therapeutic - especially when I know there's a hot shower to go back to! The wind was blowing directly onshore with no chance of shelter. In a short lull in the rain I scanned the sea revealing a steady passage of auks - Guillemots and Razorbills - along with a strong passage of Kittiwakes. Three Manx Shearwaters went past too and a Cetti's Warbler called from Godrevy Beach. The real find however, and a sad one at that, was a dead Common Porpoise on the beach. The Great Black-backed Gulls had begun to tuck in and when I walked back later the tide had reclaimed the corpse. It is not the first cetacean I have found on this beach and it is always a sorry sight, particularly as I had seen a small pod of porpoises heading past Lowland Point just a couple of days ago. The dead porpoise on Godrevy Beach I reported the dead porpoise to the Cetacean Strandings Investigations Programme (CSIP) based at the London Natural History Museum. Here you can report both dead and live strandings and hopefully the information will contribute to a better understanding of these ocean-going creatures.
My time in Cornwall was up but my stormy visit to Lowland Point gave me one more gift in the form of a Whimbrel - a scarce wintering bird and no doubt one of the first to be recorded in Britain this year. Soaked through I could return for my hot shower with 90 species under my belt for the week and a respectable 114 for my British Year List 2025.  2024 is almost over and 'man-flu' and heavy misty weather had somewhat subdued the final week of the year. However, a few final highlights were to be had most importantly in the form of an adult Great Black-backed Gull that appeared on 28th Dec at Coursers GPS. Now a really scarce visitor to Herts (less than 10 records this year in the whole of Herts), this sighting becomes #151 for my 2024 Five Miles From Home List and mirrors my only sighting last year on 24th Dec 2023. This also means that my local list hits a new record count with the previous highest total being 150 in 2023! Gulls unsurprisingly have been the focal point for December and Coursers GPs together with the fresh quarry scrape at Stanborough GPs have been the key areas. Both a third winter Caspian Gull and an adult Yellow-legged Gull have been seen on and off at Stanborough while a smart adult winter Mediterranean Gull appeared at Coursers GPs on 22nd Dec. From left to right: 3rd winter Caspian Gull, adult Yellow-legged Gull & adult winter Mediterranean Gull Aside from gulls December has been fairly quite apart from the already-mentioned Yellow-browed Warbler at Verulamium Park in St Albans last seen on Christmas Eve. Sadly it could not be relocated in time for the Herts Bird Club Christmas Count. A few shots of the Yellow-browed Warbler at Verulamium Park on 20th Dec 2024 A single Dunlin sheltering with the Lapwings on 1st Dec at Coursers was the only real wader highlight and up to 3 Great White Egrets have been gracing Tyttenhanger GPs. The wide-ranging immature male Marsh Harrier was also spooking the gulls at Coursers on 28th Dec. Dunlin with the Lapwings at Coursers GPs on 1st & 3 Great White Egrets at Tyttenhanger GPs on 22nd Some video screen-grabs of the immature male Marsh Harrier at Coursers GPs on 28th Dec That's it for 2024 (I think) so Happy New Year one and all! Let's see what 2025 brings...
 I was preparing myself for an '11th hour' scramble to get to my 150 species target for my annual "Five Miles From Home List" but then Sun 10th Nov dawned and, before I knew it, the target had been achieved. Sitting comfortably on 148 species for the year, I had assumed another 2 species would be possible but didn't expect to get both in the same day! The previous day had seen a Black Redstart appear at Stanborough Gravel Pits and a hybrid Caspian Gull so I knew the easterly winds were once again doing their job. Both species were however already on my list so I still held out hope for something new. Slow into the field I decided to visit Coursers GPs first and I arrived just after 9am. As seems to (annoyingly) often be the case, all the birds went up in the air as I arrived, disturbed by some unseen threat - maybe a fox along the bank. However, this time the melee of birds allowed me to immediately pick out two small waders flying around - Dunlin. I watched them settle back down along with a larger wader on the distant mud. My immediate thought was a Redshank but once the scope was focussed I could see it was a Ruff - new to my local year list and the one wader I felt I had missed this year!  A distant shot of the Ruff on 10th Nov There have been very few Ruff records in the county this year so to get one so late on was really pleasing. The 2 Dunlin stayed close by the Ruff but always distant from me and I left them feeding together to check Stanborough GPs - after all other birds may have arrived elsewhere. Arriving at Stanborough just long enough to establish that there wasn't anything extra to be seen I got a text from local birder, Steve Pearce, to say that a Red-crested Pochard was on the scrape lagoon at Tyttenhanger GPs! This is a less than annual bird in the area so I knew I had to back-track the way I had come as this would be the target #150 for the year! Arriving at Tyttenhanger GPs the male Red-crested Pochard was immediately viewable, staying close into the bank and only a few metres away from us. A beautiful bird, albeit in Category C as a 'naturalised' bird, this species nevertheless takes the honour of being the cherished 150th species for the year on my Five Miles From Home List. That said, I could argue that the Ruff was the true 150th as I have resigned myself to lumping both Mealy Redpoll and Lesser Redpoll together as a single species. That would make the pochard #151 but I have decided, rightly or wrongly, to align my lists with the current accepted list of species so have to forfeit Mealy and Lesser in favour of just 'Redpoll'. Before I sign off, it is worth mentioning another sighting that I almost ignored at the time - a smart Caspian Gull at Coursers GPs. It immediately stood out from the Herring Gulls around it but my mind was on other things. Thankfully, I took a few record shots that others were able to confirm as a 3rd winter/sub-adult Caspian Gull.  The 3rd winter Caspian Gull (centre bird) at Coursers GPs on 10th Nov All of this leaves me once again amazed at the sheer variety of species that can be seen in the year all within 5 miles of where I live. It also leaves me wondering what else might still to be found this year with over a month left to go...I am still missing Great Black-backed Gull after all!
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Rupert’s BlogHere you'll find my observations and musings on the wildlife I encounter - usually locally but sometimes further afield. Archives
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